Circular knitting machine



Feb. 27, 1945. E. w. CLARKE 2,370

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A TTORNEX Feb. 27, 1945. J E. w. CLARKE 2,370,449

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug.. 7, 1942- 8 Sheets-Sheet 7 INVENTOR. foe/w W. CLARKE Feb. 27, 1945. E; CLARKE 7 2,370,449

( CIRCULAR KNITTINGMACHINE Filed Aug. 7, 1942 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 INVENTOR. foam? (Cube/ 5 ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 27, 1945 CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE Edgar w. Clarke, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, a. signor to Interwoven Stocking Company, New

Brunswick, N. 1., a corporation of New Jersey Application August 7, 1942, Serial No. 453,993

25 Claims. (Cl. 66-44) My invention consists in the novel features hereinafter described, reference being had .,to

the accompanying drawings which illustrate one embodiment of the same, selected by me for purposes of 'illustratiom'and the said invention is fully disclosed in the following description and claims. My invention relates to a circular knitting machine for-knitting terry fabric. Such fabric is produced by feeding two threads to the needles of a knitting machine, and drawing longer loops ofone thread than of the, other, so that the long long terry loops and that required for knitting the body thread. No independent movement of the two shoulders is possible.

It is an object of the present invention-to over-' come these diflleulties and provide a circular knitting machine which will produce terry fabric having long terry loops and at the same time will I accurately control the plating of the body thread loops hereinafter referred to as terry loops protrude on one. surface of the fabric and provide a soft cushioning effect. For'example, the twothreads may be fed to the needles and knitted with the needle loops of the threads in platedrelation, but with the sinker loops of one thread longer than the corresponding sinker loops of the other thread to formthe terry loops. The terry loops may or may not be combed or brushed so as to separate the fibres and comingle them in. a soft matted condition on the surface' of the fabric. The invention is par-. ticularly'applicable to the knitting of articles of hosierywherein the heel, sole and toe portions 5 may be formed of terry fabric to provide greater softness and resiliency while the legend instep may beformed of rib knit fabric including broad rib or Links-Links fabric. b

It has heretofore been proposed to produce terry fabric by means of a circular knitting machine provided with sinkers having shoulders at different levels, the main knitting thread being I drawn over a. lower shoulder and the terry thread over-a higher shoulder, whereby the sinker loops of the terry thread are longer than those of the -main knitting thread and form the projecting loops of the-terry fabric. The use of a two level sinker to produce terry fabric. necessitates a change in the sinker wave, as it may adversely affect the operation of the machine, for example,

iii-knitting portions of fabric. where terry is not desired. Moreover, the length of the terry loops obtainable with this arrangement. is' strictly limited, particularly in a machine where there is a restricted space for operation of the sinkers, as in a machine having .co-axial needle cylinders. since the upper shoulder. over which the terry vthread is drawn and the lower shoulder over .and the terry thread so that the desired thread will appearon the surface of the fabric. In accordance .with the invention the terry loops-are produced by'instrumentalities located above the sinkers, and operated independently thereof, whereby the said instrumentalities can be moved in or out'as desired, without interfering with the normal operation of the sinkers. These instrumentalities hereinafter referred to generically as bits" are adapted to project out between the needles in' such manner as to separate a plurality of threads fed to the needles so that one thread is fed below the bits and another thread above the bits. Upon manipulation of the needles to receive and knit both of said threads, the sinker loops of one thread are drawn over the sinkers, while longersinker loops of the other thread are drawn over the bits. The long loops of thread drawn over the bits constitute the terry loops of the fabric. Where'reference is made to feeding one thread above the bits, and another thread below, it .will be understood that additional threads may be fed to the needles, as desired.

The present invention makes it possible to produce longer terry loops on a co-axial cylinder knitting machine than could be obtained with special sinkers having shoulders at two levels.

As the lower end of the upper cylinder must be' spaced only aslight distance above the upper end of the lower cylinder to'produce satisfactory rib fabric, the space between the two cylinders is strictly limited and prevents using sinkers having shoulders sufficiently spaced to produce .A further difllculty encountered is that which the body thread is-drawn are on the same sinker, they must necessarily be moved in or out together and hence movement of the sinker has to be a compromise between that desired for the long terry loops. However, by having terry forming bits associated with the upper cylinder, and cooperating with the needles operated in the lower cylinder to form the terry loops, loops of any desired length can be obtained. Moreover, the independent operation of the terry bits makes it possible to utilize them to separate. theterry and the body threads and to control the accurateplating of these threads without interfering with the operation of the sinkers.

.' It is a further object of the invention'to" pro- I vide a co-axial cylinder machine that will produce both-terry fabric and rib knit fabric include ing broad riband Links-Links fabric, so that it parts in section showing. the thread to produce a knitted article of hosiery having heel, sole and toe portions composed of a plurality of threads knit in plated relation with one thread knit to form loops which are longerthan the corresponding loops of the other thread and leg and instep portions composed of the. same threads knit in plated relation to form rib knit fabric in which corresponding loops of the respective threads are of substantially the same length.

In accordance with the invention these objects are obtained with a machine which is of relatively simple construction and operation and in which those parts requiring occasional replacement are readily accessible without dismantling the machine.

the invention will be understood from the following description and claims in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate anernbodiment selected to illustrate the invention.

I In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of so much of a knitting machine as is necessary to illustrate the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side'elevation taken from the left hand side of Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3 is a top plan view.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view showing the cam for operating the needles and sliders which are shown schematically in side elevation at the right hand side of the figure. i

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical section showing adjacent portions of the upper and lower cylinders with the terry loop forming mechanism in operative position.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 but with the terry mechanism inoperative.

Fig. 'lis a view similar-to Fig. 5 showing a modification. r

Fig. 8 is a plan view showing the dial carrying the bits for forming the terry loops.

Fig. 8a is a fragmentary plan view correspond. ing to a portion of Fig. 8, and showing abutting ends of the verge section.

Fig. 9 Ba fragmentary plan view with certain feeding mechanism.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view of mechanism for moving one of the thread feeds.

Fig. 11 is a schematic View showing means for moving the terry loop forming mechanism into and out of operative position.

Fig. '12 is a schematicview showing the operation of the needles, sinkers and bits in forming the terry fabric. 1

Fig. 13 to Fig. 17 are fragmentary views illustrating diagrammatically the successive steps in forming the stitch structure of the fabric.

Fig. 18 represents an article of hosiery made in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 19 represents the stitch structure of a section of fabric in said article.

In Fig. 18 there is shown an article of hosiery producedin accordance with my invention and having an anti-ravel edge I, a top portion 2- formed of rib knit fabric, a leg portion 3 andan instep portion 4, both formed of rib knit fabric.

which is preferably different from that of the top portion, and a heel portion 5, sole 8, toeband I and toe 8, all'formed of terry fabric. The stitch structure of the fabric is shown in Fig. 19 wherein the upper portion of thefigure represents a section of the leg 3; the lower left hand portion of the figure represents a section of the heel 5 and the lower right hand portion of the figure represents a section of the instep l. The leg 3 and instep 4 are composed of rib knit fabric'being shown as 6 x 3 rib, while the heel 5, together with the sole 8, toe band I and toe 8 are formed ofterry fabric. In the terry portion of the fabric, a body thread B and a. terry thread T are knitted insuch manner that needle, loops 9 are formed of both threads in plated relation, while the sinkerloops are drawn separately so that the sinker loops ill of the terry thread T are substantially longer than the sinker loops I l of the body thread B and constitutes the terry loops of the fabric.

Other objects and advantages of The term "needle loop is used herein to designate the lower portion of the stitch, i. e., the portion engaged by the needle in forming the stitch. while sinker loop" is used to designate the upperpart of the stitch, whether drawn over a sinker. or other instrumentality. It will be'seen that there is a terry 100p Ill corresponding to each sinker loop ll of the body thread B so that a dense, soft terry fabricis provided. To. avoid obscuring the stitch structure, the terry loops are shown shorter than they would ordinarily be in carrying out my invention. Preferably, the terry loops should be at least twice as long as the sinker loops ll of the body thread. In the instep portion 4, and the leg 3, the same threads B and T are knitted in plated relation to form rib knit fabric in which corresponding loops of the respective threads are of substantially the same length. Hence, in the rib portion of the fabric, the sinker loops I! of the terry thread T are of substantially the same length as the sinker loops -II of the body thread B. The toe band 1 may be formed ofterry fabric only on the sole half thereof, or all the way around, as shown.

In knitting the socks shown on a circular knitting machine having superimposed coaxial cylinders, the top portion 2 is knitted with every other needle in the upper cylinder to produce a 1 x 1 rib or with different needle arrangements to produce any rib desired. Upon completion of the top portion, certain needles are transferred from one cylinder to the other to leave groups of six needles in the lower cylinder, alternating with groups of three needles in the upper cylinder. The needles operating in the lower cylinder form outwardly facing stitches constituting the outer.

ribs of the fabric, while the needles in the .upper cylinder form inwardly facing stitches constituting the inner ribs. It will be under'stoodthat rib fabric other than 6 x 3 rib can be obtained by suitable transfer of the needles. 7 per portion of the heel 5 is reached, the needles on the instep side of the cylinder remain in position to continue rib knitting while consecutive needles on the sole side of the cylinder are all positioned on the lower cylinder, and the instrumentalities for forming the long. terry loops come into operation, to produce the terry fabric of the heel. The latter group of needles which up to this point have been producing rib knittin must now produce terry fabric. Moreover. during the knitting of the sole 6 and instep]. one group of needles knits terry fabric while another group of needles knits rib fabric so that part of each course is terry, and the remainder is rib. Although the terry fabric thus extends When the up loose ends of terry thread at the line where the terry fabric and rib fabric meet, and it is not necessary to cut and bind the terry thread in each course in passing from terry fabic to ribfabrlc, since the terry thread is continuous and is knitted in plating relation with the body thread ingthe rib knit portion of the fabric. When the toe band I is reached, the needles on the instep side of the cylinder are transferred to the lower cylinder, and if it is de'sired"to' produce terry fabric all the way around the toe band, the terry bits on the instep side of the cylinder come into the operation. The two groups of bits dispose respectively on the sole=side and on the instep side of the cylinder, thus come into operation at different times. In knitting the heel 5 and toe 8, the machine is operated by oscillating the needle cylinders so as to knit first in one direction, and then in the opposite direction. Both the .body thread B and terry thread T are fed in each direction'of rotation and are knit to form fabric having terry loops in each wale of each course so that a dense terry fabric is provided in the heeland toe por- 1 t-ions.

' forms a strong body for the fabric. Alternatively.

the. body thread can be made towform one face of the fabric, and the terry thread the other face. If.desired, the plating may be varied in different portions of the fabric,-for example, to obtain a design effect. Plating of the threads is accurately controlled by operation of the mechanism for forming the terry loops, as will bemore fully explained below.-

In Figs. 1 to 17 of the drawings, there is shown so much of a knitting'machine as is necessary to-illustrate my invention. The invention is shown by way of example embodied in a knitting machine of the type in which superimposed co-axial needle cylinders are provided with needles having hooks 'atg bothends, suitable transfer mechanism being also provided for shift ing the needles from one cylinder to theother whereby all of the needles may be assembled in needles may be transferred from the lower cylinder to the upper cylinder to produce rib knitting. The particularmachine shown in the drawings is of the general type manufactured by William .Spie'rs, Ltd., of Leicester, England, and certain standard parts which are not necessaryto an understanding of the invention have been omit ted for the sake of clearness.

knit have short knitting butts while the sliders for needles on the opposite side of the cylinder i. e., the instep side have long knitting butts.

When in the upper cylinder, the needles are operated by similar sliders .2I having knitting butts 22 and transfer butts 23 engaging suitable cams.

The cams for operating the needles are shown in Fig. f1 where the direction of movement of the needles and sliders relative to the cams'when the machine is operated by continuous rotation is from left to right, as indicated by the arrow. The needles operating in the lower cylinder pass through a knitting wave as shown, being drawn 24 and a heel stitch cam 28 and are thereafter raised to clearing position by heel riser cam 29 andheel clearing cam 30. During the knitting of the heel and toe, the lower cylinder needles onthe instep side of the cylinder, i. e., the long butt needles are raised by switch cams 3| to an inactive position in which they hold their stitches while the knitting butts of the respective sliders pass above center cam 24.' The switch cams 3i are movable vertically from the inoperative position shown in Fig. 4 to a higher operative poknitting during the knitting of welt courses on provided an upper transfer cam 38 anda lower transfer cam 39 which are movable inwardly the lower cylinder needles, and with a switch cam 31 operable in conjunction with lower cylinder switch cams 3| to render the needles on the instep side of the cylinder inactive during the knitting of the heel and toe. There. are also and outwardly and act on transfer butts of difthe lower cylinder for the production of circular 1 plain knitting, or alternate needles or groups of The machine illustrated has a lower needle cylinder I5 (Figs. 1, 2 and 5), an upper-needle cylinder l8 and-a circular series of needles 'll having a hook and latch at each end and ope'r'- able in either cylinder. When in the lower cylinder, the needles are operated by sliders l3 engaging the lower hooks of the needles, and having knitting butts l3 and transfer butts 20 adapted to engage needle operating cams. Pref- ""*erably-,the sliders operating the needles on the sole side of the cylindrs,'i. e., the side on which the heel, sole and toe of an'article of hosiery are inder to the other as desired.

ferent lengths to transfer needles from one The movable cams such as the transfer cams. welt cam and switch cams are moved into and out of operative position by suitable mechanism for exam-ple, under the control of a pattern drum 40 which is intermittently racked around during the knitting of the articleand' has cams such ascam ll acting through pivoted arms 42 and tappets 43 on rocker arms which are connected by suitable mechanism with the respective cams. As the control of such cams is well known in the art, it will not be described in further detail.

Adjacent the upper and lower. stitch V-c arns, thereis provided a feeding station for feeding thread'to the needles. At this feeding station the body threa'd B and terry thread T are fed in spaced relation so that the instrumentalities for forming the terry loops of the terry'fabric can come :between them and separate. the two t reads. In the particular arrangement shown,

the feed for the terry thread '1' is provided by a cyl-- (Fig. or equivalent instrumentalities disposed between successive needles and adapted to cooperate with the needles in forming stitches. The

sinkers are shown as having butts 5| which are acted on by sinker cam 52 to move the sinkers between an inner position shown at the left and side of Fig. 5, and an outer position shown at the right hand side of said figure.

In accordance with the present invention, the instrumentalities cooperating with the needles to form the long terry loops comprise a series of bits 53 (Fig. 5) associated with the upper cylinder. The'bits 53 are located directly above the sinkers 50 so as to project out between successive needles when the needles are in position to receive thread fed at the feeding station. The relation of the bits to the'thread feeds is such that the bits project between the two threads so that the terry thread T is fed above the bits while the body thread B is fed below the bits and between the bit and the sinkers. Where reference is made to feeding one thread above and another thread below the bits, it is not'necessary for one thread feed to be above and the other below the level of the bits, but only for the threads to befed in at least slightly separated relation to' one another and in such relation to the bits and needles that one thread is received above the bits and the other below. The needles operating in the lower cylinder are raised high enough to receive both the body thread B fed abovethe sinker but below the bits and the terry thread T fed above the bits. When the, needles are drawn down by the stitch cam, loops of body thread are drawn over the sinkers while loops of the terry thread are drawn over the bits, as shown in. Figs. 12 to 16. Fig. 12 represents diagrammatically thepassage "ment shown, the dial is supported at. the lower end of a. shaft 55 extending down through the upper cylinder, being held on said shaft by washers 55 and screw 51." The bit dial 54 is rotatable with the cylinder and is provided withyradial grooves 58 in which the bits 53 are slidable in and out. The path traveled by the. bits is illustrated in Fig. 8 which shows the dial in plan. If it is desired to knit terry fabric only in the heel, sole of the needles through the knitting wave, -and shows how the terry thread T is fed to the needles above the bitswhile the body thread B is fed to the needles below the bits. Fig. 13 shows the relative positions of the needle, sinker, bits and threads at the feeding station. Fig. 14 shows a needle beginning to draw a loop of the terry thread over the bits 53 and receiving the body thread B in the hook of the needle. Fig. 15 shows the needle drawn down to draw a loop of the body thread over the sinkers and a much longer loop of theterry thread over the bits. Fig. 16 is a perspective view of'the parts in the same position as-in Fig. l5and shows how the new stitch loop is drawn down through the previous stitch. It will be seen that the needle loops of the body thread B and the terry thread T are drawn in plating relation while the sinker loops are drawn separately with the sinker loops of the terry thread much longer than the sinker loops of the body being shown approximately twice as long. If desired, the sinkers 50 may be set lower to increase-still further the difference in length of 1 the terry loops and the sinker loops of the body thread.

feeding station ,and'are retracted to release the terry loops after loops of the terry thread and body thread have been drawn by the needles, as illustratedin Figs. 15 and 16. Whilethe bits 53 and toe portions of a sock, the bits 53 need be provided on only one side of the dial corresponding to the sole side of the needle cylinders as shown in Figs. 5 and 8.

As illustrated in Figs. 5 and 8, the bits 53 are projected and retracted by means of butts 60 engaging a cam track 5| in a cam 62 located above the dial 54. The cam 52 is held against the feeding station to project and retract the bits I at the proper time. Thus the terry forming instrumentalities 53 are inserted between the threads from inside the needle cylinder and are movable in and out independently of the sinkers. Optimum operation of both the sinkers and the bits 53 is hencepossible.

When the needle cylinders are turned alternately in opposite directions as in knitting the heel and toe, the relative positions at which the bits are projected and the point at which the threads are fed to the needles must be shifted upon reversal of-the direction of rotation to assure proper separation of the threads. In the arrangement shown in the drawings, this is accomplished quite simply by oscillating the bit cam 62 when the machine i operated by reciprocation.

'At its upper end and above the top plate 53 of tional drag between the cam and the needle cylinder or an element rotating therewith. As shOWn in Fig. 5, the cam 62 is provided with a friction plate 69 pressed against the upper face of the bit dial 54 by spring 10. Upon reversal of the direction of rotation of the needle cylinders and dial 54, the cam 62 is carried with the dial by friction plate 69 until stopped byone of arms 64 or 65.

In order to be able to knit non-terry fabric all around the cylinder, for egiample, in knittin the top or leg of a sock, provision is made for rendering the terry bits 53 inoperative. This may be accomplished by raisingthe bit cam 62 out of engagement'with the butts 80 of the bits. In the arrangement shown in Figs. 5 and -6, cam 62 is provided with a movable section II which is raised instead of raising the-whole cam. The means for raising the movable cam section from 2,370,449 an operative position (Fig. --to an inoperative position (Fig. 6) is shown diagrammatically in Figs. 5 and 11 and comprises a link ,,|2 attached to the cam section and connected to one end of a rocker arm 14 pivotally mounted at on the top plate of the machine. The link 12 has a flexible joint I3 to permit oscillation of cam 82 as described above. The other end of rocker arm 14 is connected by a link 15 with a pivoted camsuch that cam section II israised when the bits are in retracted position. i. e., when the butts are in the circular part of cam track 6|.(Fig1 8).

Alternatively, the bits can be rendered ineffective .to produce terry loops by shiftin fthe relative position or the thread feeding station and the point at which the bits are projected. so that the bits come out too late to separate the threads. In Fig. 8 the relative position of the thread feeding station with respect to the point at which the bits are projected is indicated by an arrow 8|. If the relative position of the thread feed is shifted to a point represented by arrow 82, the bits do not come out until after both threads have been drawn down by the needles. The bits are hence ineffective to separate the threads and loops of both threads are drawn over the sinkers so that no terry loops are formed. The shifting of the relative position 'of the feeding station and the point at which the bits are projected can be eifected by moving the bulfer block 65 (Fig. 3) to permit bit operating cam 62 to turn farther than is permitted during oscillation of the needle cylinder.

The bits 53 serve not-only to form terry loops but also to control accurate plating of the threads. As will be seen from Figs. 12 and 13, the hook of the needle engages the terry thread T first and draws a partial loop thereof over bits 53 before the body thread T is engaged by the hook. By drawing the hit back slightly just as the hook of the needle engages the body thread the terryv thread T is drawn to the back of the hook and when stitches are drawn will form the outer face of the fabric. Alternatively, if the bit 53 is pushed out slightly as the hook engages the body thread B, the terry thread will be forced to the front of the hook (Fig. 17) so that thread B lies behind thread T, and the outer face of the fab rlc will hence be formed by the body thread B. Plating can thus be accurately'controlled. The bits may be provided with notches 83 to give the hits a better purchase on the thread in controlling plating.

When needles are operated in the upper cylinder as occurs in knitting rib fabric, there must be provided a knocking over edge which serves the same purpose as the sinkers in .the lower cylinder to engage the previously .drawn stitches and cause them to be cast oif whennew loops are drawn by the needles. The lower edge of the upper cylinder wall ordinarily serves this function and is commonly referred to as a verge. The verge may be integral with the cylinder or maybe in the form of a separate ring having needle grooves aligned with the needle grooves of the cylinder. As the terry bits 53 are preferably projected .at a level above the lower edge of the verge, in order to form long terry loops the problem arises as to how 'toprevent inter- 7 ference between the bits and the verge. The

problem is complicated by the fact that during the knitting of the sole and instep of a sock such as that shown in Fig. 18, the terry bits must be in operative position on one side of the needle cylinder to form a terry sole, while the verge must be in operative position on the other side of the cylinder to knit a ribbed instep. In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, this problem is solved by splitting the verge into two sections so that the verge section 84 on the sole side of the cylinder can be raised out of the way of the bits while the verge section 85 on the instep side of the cylinder remains at proper level for producing rib knitting. As shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 11, the verge section 84 is secured to or integral with the upper needle cylinder l8 which is rotatable about a bearing sleeve 88 and is supported by a vertical ball bearing 8'! carried by a bearing plate '88. The bearing plate is secured to the lower end of a sleeve 80 which surrounds the vertical shaft 55 carrying the bit dial 54 and bit cam 62 and extends up above the top plate 53 where it is provided with a collar 9|. The collar is engagedby a bifurcated lever '92 bearing at one end at the top plate and having the other end connected by a link 93 to a rocker arm 94 having a nose portion 95 adapted to engage the cam 96 on the pattern drum 48. When the nose of the rocker arm. rides up upon cam 88' the upper needle cyl-' inder and hence the attached verge section 84 on the sole side of the cylinder is raised up out of the way of the bits 53 so that the latter can ,be projected out to form terry loops (Fig. 5).

However, during the knitting of the top and leg portions of the sock where there is no terry, the upper needle cylinder and verge section 84 are lowered (Fig. 6) so that the two sections of the verge are at the-same level. Itwill be understood that the vertical movement of the upper needle cylinder does not affect the length of the stitches drawn, as the stitch length is controlled by the distance the needles are drawn up by stitch cam 33 which of course does not move with the cylinder.

The other verge section 85 is carried by the bit dial 54 and remains at a constant level. As the ends of verge section abut the ends of verge section 84 carried by the upper needle cylinder (Fig. 8a) the bit dial 54 is made to rotate with the. cylinder and theneedle grooves of the verge section 85 and of the cylinder are maintained in alignment. The split verge thus forms a simple and effective means for driving the bit dial 54 in synchronism with the needle cylinders. The height of the dial and hence of verge section 85 can be adjusted by an adjustment screw 91 at the top of shaft 55 by which the dial is carried in order to have the two sections of the verge at exactly the'same level when verge section 84 is in its lower position. The adjustment screw 91 can also be used to change the length of the terry loops, it being understood that the length of the loops is determined by the distance the bits are located above the sinkers of the lower cylinder. In this event the vertical position of the upper needle cylinder carrying verge section 84 can also turbing the relation of the set parts. Moreover, the cam track inthe bit operating cam 62 is formed to provide a gate 98 (indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 8). through which the bits can be removed and replaced without dismantling the machine.

If it is desired to knit terry all around the fabric, for example in the toe band of the sock shown in Fig. 18 instead of only on the sole half of the fabric, terry bits are provided all the way around the cylinder. Such an arrangement is shown in a Fig. '7. It will be understood that in this event,

that the terry bits may comeout through the cylinder wall, as indicated at the left hand side of Fig. 7. In some instances it may be desired to use the terry bits as a knocking over edge orverge for the upper cylinder needles, in which event the bits are manipulated so that the outer ends thereof are aligned with and substantially flush with thewall between the needle grooves of the cylinder at the knocking over point. With this duce the welt or anti-revel edge I, alternate needles are transferred to the upper cylinder and at least one course of 1 x 1 rib is knit. v The welt cam 35 (Fig. 4) is withdrawn to render the upper cylinder needles inoperative, while a number of welt courses, for example, four or five are knit on lower cylinder needles only, whereupon the welt cam again goes in to close the welt and the knitting of 1 x 1 rib is resumed. The 1 x' 1 rib knitting is continued until a sufiicient length of the top portion 2 hasbeen produced, whereupon the transfer cams 38 and 39 act on selected needles to position groups of six consecutive needles in the lower cylinder alternating with groups of three consecutive needles in the upper cylinder for the 6 x 3 fabric of the leg. During the knitting of the welt, top andleg, the terry bits 53 remain inactive.

When the heel portion 5 is reached, a needle transfer is effected so that on the sole side of the cylinder,, consecutive needles are positioned in the lower cylinder, while the needles on the instep side remained positioned for 6 x 3 rib. At

about the same time, the upper cylinder is raised to raise verge section 84 on the sole side of the cylinder, and the movable section II of bit operating cam 62 is lowered to operative position to cause the bits 53 to be projected out between arrangement the bits cooperate with the lower cylinder needles to form terry loops and cooperate with upper cylinder needles in the manner of a verge to cause previously drawn stitches to be cast off, thus serving a dual purpose.

' I00 is engageable by an inclined cam surface I02 for moving the finger inwardly and an abutment I03 for moving the finger downwardly, both the cam surface and abutment being carried by a rod I04 movable up and down by a rocker arm I05 (Fig. 10). The rocker arm I05 is actuated by a the threads fed at the feeding station. v Preferably one or more circular courses are knit before the .needle circle begins oscillation to produce the side of the cylinder are rendered inactive by control of the switch cams 3i and 31, and the feed finger 48 for the body thread feed is held in and down by the cam surface I02 and the abutment I'03 (Fig. 10). When the heel is completed and circular knitting resumed, the feed finger 40 is allowed to move up and out under action of spring I00 and the switch cams are'operated to tappet I06 engageable with cams I01 on the pattern drum 40. As shown in the drawings Figs. 2 and 10, the rockerarm I05 also operates the upper and lower switch cams 31 and M as these cams are also moved at the start and finish of the heel and toe. A spring I08 is provided for moving the feed finger 48 up and out' when released by upward movement of rod I04 (Figs. 1 and 10). The movement of the feed finger to one position for knitting circular work and to another position for reciprocating work further assures accurate plating of the threads at all times, and avoids any possibility of the body thread being missed by any of the needles upon oscillation of the needle cylinder during the knitting of the heel and toe.

The operation of the machine will be understood from a brief description of the steps in making an article of hosiery such as that shown in Fig. 18. The socks are preferably produced by string work with a number of ravel courses of plain knit fabric referred to as a loopers edge whereby cause needles on the instep side of the cylinder to resume knitting. During the knitting of the instep 4 and sole 6,, the needles on the sole side of the cylinder cooperate with bits 53 to produce long terry loops of the terry thread T while on the instep side no bits are projected, and hence.

the body thread B and terry thread T are knitted in plated relation. This condition is represented in Fig. 12 where it will be seen that the needles at the right hand side of the figure are producing terry fabric, while the needles at the left hand side are positioned for producing the 6 x 3 knitting 'of the instep. When the toe band I is reached, all the remaining upper cylinder needles are transferred to the lower cylinder, and if it is desired to produce terry fabricall around the toe band, the bits on the instep side of the cylverge are lowered to bring the two sections of the verge to the same level.

It will be seen that the invention thus rovides a'novel method of producing terry fabric instrumentalities located above the needle cylinder and operated independently of between successive socks in' he strin To pr the sinkers are projected between the needles asraue w 7 to separate the terry thread and body thread and to cooperate with the needles in forming long terry loops.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: v 1. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle I cylinders with needles operable in either cylinder and means for feeding thread to the needles, the combination with means for manipulating consecutive needles in the lower cylinder to other thread over the sinkers and cam means for moving the bits outwardly to receive the thread and "inwardly to release the loops drawn over said bits. 7. In aknitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder and means for driving the needle cylinders alternately in opposite directions, the combination of thread draw needle loops of thread fed by said feeding Y utive needles in the lower cylinder to draw needle I i of sinkers associated with the lower cylinder and cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to form sinker loops of one of said threads, and instrumentalities associated with the upper cylinder and cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to form sinker loops of another of said threads. 1

i. In a knitting machine having superposed needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder and sinkers associated with the lower cylinder, the combination of outwardly projecting bits associated withthe upper cylinder, thread feeding means adapted to position one thread above and another thread below said bits, and means for manipulating needles to receive both threads and to draw loops of one thread over said bits and draw loops of said other thread over the sinkers.

5. In a knitting machine having superposed needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder, and sinkers associated with the lower cylinder, the combination of means for feeding two threads in spaced relation to one another, a series of bits associated with the upper cylinder, means for moving the bits outwardly to cause them to project between the said two threads, means for manipulating needles to receive both of said threads and to draw loops of one thread over the sinker and draw loops of the other thread over said bits, and means for retractin the bits to release the last mentioned loops.

6. In a knitting machine having superposed needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder and sinkers associated with the lower cylin feeds for feeding two threads in spaced relation a series of bits associated with the upper cylinder, means for moving said bits outwardly to separate said threads and to cooperate with the needles to produce longer sinker loops of one of said threads when the threads are knitted, and

means for shifting the relative positions of the point at which the bits are moved outwardly and the points at which the threads are fed upon re- I versal of the direction of rotation of theneedle cylinders to obtain proper separation of the threads in each direction. I

8. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle'cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder and means for driving the needle cylinders alder, the combination of a dial associated with the upper cylinder and rotating therewith, bits carried by said dial and movable between an inner retracted position and an outer position in which said bits project outwardly beyond the needle circle, means for feeding a thread above said bits and another thread below said bits, cams for manipulating the needles to draw loops of one thread over the bits and to draw loops of the ternately in opposite directions, the combination of thread feeds for feeding two threads in spaced relations, a dial associated with the upper cylinder and rotating therewith, a series of bits carried by said dial, a cam for moving said bits outwardly to separate said threads and to cooperate with the needles to produce longersinker loops of one thread than of the other thread, and means for oscillating said cam upon reversal of the direction of rotation of the needle cylindersto shift the point at which the bits are moved outwardly. i1

9. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders and needles operable in either cylinder, the combination of thread feeds for feeding two threads in spaced relation, a dial associated with the upper cylinder and rotating therewith, a, series of bits carried by said dial, a cam for moving said bits outwardly to separate said threads and to cooperate with the needies to produce longer sinker loops of one thread than of the other thread, and means for shifting said cam to render said. bits ineffective to separate said threads. e

10. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders and needles operable in either cylinder, the combination of thread feeds for feeding two threads in spaced relation, a series of bits associated withthe upper cylinder and movable between a retracted position and an outer position in which said bits project outwardly beyond the needle circle to separate said threads and cooperate with the needles to produce longer sinker loops of one thread than of the other thread, a cam for moving the bits outwardly,

and means for rendering said cam inoperative and maintaining the bits in retracted position.

11. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder tion in which said bits project outwardly beyond the needle circle to separate said threads, and means for raising one section of the verge to permit bits to project out beneath'it while maintaining another section of the verge at a level to cooperate with needles in the upper cylinder to draw stitches.

12. In a knitting machine having coaxial nee-.

the upper cylinder and rotatable therewith, a series of bits carried by said dial and a verge cooperating-with needles. in the upper cylinder to draw stitches, one'section of said verge being carried by said dial and another section of said verge being carried by 'the upper needle cylinder.

13. In 'a knitting machine having a needle cylinder, needles operable in said cylinder and sinkers operable between consecutive needles, the combination of a dial above the needle cylinder and rotatable therewith, bitscarried by said dial and movable between an innerretracted position and an outer position in which said bits project out between the needles, means for feeding a thread above said bits and another thread below said bits, means for manipulating the, needles to receive both threads and draw loops of one thread over the sinkers and longer loops of the other thread over said bits, with the needle loops of both threads drawn in plating relation, and means for moving said bits to dev termine the relative position of the threads in hooks of the needles to control the plating of said threads.

-14 In a knitting machine having a needle cylinder, needles operable in said cylinder, and

means for rotating the needle cylinder alternately in opposite directions, the combination of a dial above the needle cylinder and rotatable therewith, bits carried by said dial and movable between an inner retracted position in which said bits project out between the needles, a cam for projecting and retracting said bits, a feeding station for feeding a thread above said bits; and another thread below said bits means for manipulating the needles to take and knit both of said threads in each direction of rotation of the needle cylinder, and means for shifting said cam upon reversal of rotation to control the point at which said bits are projected.

15. In "a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders and needles operable in either cylinder, the combination of a dial, a series of bits carried by said dial and movable from an inner retracted position and an outer position 1 in which said bits project'outbetween the nee-v longer sinker loops of one thread than of another thread, the needle loops of both of said threads being drawn in plating relation, and means for manipulating said instrumentalities to control the plating of said threads.

17. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders and needles operable in either by!- inder, a series 'of instrumentalities associated with the upper cylinder and cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to produce tubular seamless terry fabric part way around the needle circle, a second series of instrumentalities associated with the upper cylinder and cooperating with the balance of the needles in the lower cyl-' inder, to produce terry fabric the rest -.of the dle cylinders and needles operable in either cylinder, the combination of a dial associated with way around the needle circle, and means for separately controlling said series of instrumentalities to render one or both series inoperative.

18. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders and needles operable in either cylinder, 9. series of instrumentalities associated with the upper cylinder and cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to produce terry fabric on one I bits associated with the upper cylinder and adapted to project out between consecutive needles, means for feeding a thread above said bits and another thread below said bits, means for manipulating consecutive needles on one side of the needle circle in' the lower cylinder to receive both of said threads and cooperate with said bits to produce terry 'fabric,.means for positioning selected needles on the other side of the needle .circle in the upper cylinder with intervening needles in the lower cylinder, and means for main the lower cylinder to form sinker loops of said thread. 1

21. .In a knitting machine having a needle cylinder, needles operable in said cylinder and means for selectively rotating or oscillating said cylinder, the combination of a dial above the needle cylinder and rotatable therewith, bits carried by said dial and adapted to project out beyond the needle circle, a thread feed for feeding a thread above said bits, a thread feed for feeding another thread below said bits, and means for moving at least one of said thread feeds closer to the needle circle when the needle cylinder is operated by oscillation.

22. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders with needles operable in either cylinder and means for feeding thread to the needles, the combination with means for manipulating needles in the lower cylinder to draw needle loops of thread fed by said feeding means, of instrumentalities associated with the upper cylinder and cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to form sinker loops of said thread, and a gate for removing and replacing said instrumentalities without dismantling the machine.

23. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders with needles operable in either cylinder and means for. feeding thread to the needles, the combination with means for manipulating needles in the lower cylinder to draw needle loops of thread fed by saidfeeding means, of instru-.

- operating with needles in the upper cylinder to cast of! previously drawn stitches.

7 2,870,449 24. In a knitting machine having coaxial needle cylinders, needles operable in either cylinder, means for feeding a plurality oithreads to the needles, a sectional verge associated with the upper cylinder and adapted to cooperate with needles in the upper'cylinder to draw stitches, in-

strumentalities cooperating with needles in the lower cylinder to draw longer loops of one thread than of another thread to form terry fabric, means controlling the operation of said instrumentalities and the needles to produce terry tabbric on one arcuate section of the needle cylinder and non-terry'rib knit fabric on another section, and means for raising one section of said verge to permit operation of said instrumentalities to produce terry fabric while maintaining another section of the verge at a level to cooperate with needles in the upper cylinder to draw stitches.

25 In a knitting machine having a rotatableneedle cylinder, a circular series of needles operable in said cylinder, a sinker ring inside the needle circle, a circular series of sinkers carried by said sinker ring and disposed between ccnsecutive needles, a dial disposed inside the needle circle coaxially with the needle cylinder and rotatable therewith, bits carried by said dial and movable between an inner retracted position and an outer position in which consecutive bits project out between consecutive needles, a feeding station {or feeding a thread above said hits and another thread below said hits, cams for manipulating the needles to receive both threads at said feeding station and draw loops of one thread over the sinkers and longer loops oi. the other thread over said bits, and means for moving said bits independently of the sinkers to project the bits outwardly at said feeding station.

spam w. CLARKE. 

